Mimi

Gr 4–6—Even after Mimi gets caught reading her older sister's diary, she can't stop herself. She reads it to stay connected to her family because ever since their mother was killed in an accident, the entire family has been unable to cope. Mimi and her siblings stopped talking to each other. Conor plays the drums late into the night. Sally is keeping a big secret, something so terrible she won't even write about it her diary. Even worse, Dad has completely shut down. Add a school bully and a new teacher to complicate matters. Luckily for Mimi, she is surrounded by a loving and attentive extended family and a best friend who lightens the load by telling corny jokes. Mimi is Chinese and was adopted into her Irish family. While this doesn't play into the main plot, it comes up at a pivotal point in the story where Mimi learns to stand up for herself. Mimi's voice is sincere and her grief is incredibly real. All this emotion is skillfully tempered with humor and hope. Justine Eyre gives John Newman's story (Candlewick, 2011) an authentic Irish voice and gives each character a distinct intonation. A worthy addition to school and public library audiobook collections.—April Mazza, Wayland Public Library, Wayland MA